


the cat's out of the bag, put it back in

by spideywhiteys



Series: 365 Days of Naruto AUs [40]
Category: Naruto
Genre: Alternate Universe - Magical Realism, Alternate Universe - Supernatural Elements, Child Sasuke, Gen, Half-Hatake Tobirama, Werecats, Werewolves, i will die supporting that headcanon, secret society of supernatural creatures, senju are dryads, the uchiha are the werecats, tobirama is half werewolf half dryad
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-09
Updated: 2021-02-09
Packaged: 2021-03-16 00:48:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,043
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29323476
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/spideywhiteys/pseuds/spideywhiteys
Summary: Uchiha Sasuke is going to prove himself to his Clan. Six years old and thoughts of grandeur in his head, he marches right into the city - his exploration lasts for about five minutes.
Relationships: Senju Tobirama & Uchiha Sasuke
Series: 365 Days of Naruto AUs [40]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2086938
Comments: 5
Kudos: 50





	the cat's out of the bag, put it back in

**Author's Note:**

> Day 40: Supernatural AU / Sasuke + Tobirama

Sasuke may be only six years old, but he’s not stupid. All the big, tall, mean adults seem to think that  _ he _ can’t think, when really he can — but most of the time the things they want him to think about are boring. Sasuke is six and he feels invincible. Yeah, his dad might barely give him a passing glance, and his mom is busy managing the Clan so she can’t spend as much time with him anymore — and  _ yeah, _ Itachi doesn’t come around much now that he’s older and at school — but Sasuke is fine. He doesn’t cry and scream for attention. He’s not  _ Naruto,  _ the stupid fox-kin. 

No, instead he pushes forward and tries to win the attention of others in more subtle ways. Good grades, beating out everyone else during games or tests, being the first in his age group to shift. 

It’s never good enough.

_ Itachi shifted at four. Itachi perfected his shifter abilities within two months. Itachi surpassed those five years his senior at school. Itachi already did this _ — Itachi. Itachi. Itachi.

Sasuke loves his brother because Itachi is the one who dotes on him, who projects such vivid, tangible love that Sasuke could never hope  _ not _ to return. But sometimes he wants to be Sasuke and not a lesser version of Itachi. He wants to do something amazing and awe-inspiring that belongs to him and only him.

So he takes it upon himself to do just that. 

The Uchiha are a Clan of werecats, and they mirror their fully feline brethren by being perceived as stand-offish, slow to trust and highly in tune with their survival instincts. They are stalking beasts that demand dominance and independence. Great tales are spun about their legacy, ingrained in the minds of Uchiha children — ingrained in the mind of Sasuke.

While one would expect their natural enemies to be werewolves, they aren’t at war with them — just usually find themselves ignoring each other. The Inuzuka and Hatake keep to their side of the map, and the Uchiha stick to theirs. 

No, who the Uchiha war with are the Senju, a Clan of Dryads who rule the Great Forest to the west. 

Not that anyone outside of the Supernatural world knows this.

See, Sasuke is smart. So he knows he has to hide and pretend to be “human” when he sneaks into the city. The place is bustling, all concrete and car motors and smog stinging his nostrils. It’s loud and gross, and Sasuke has no idea how Itachi is able to go to school in the city and  _ not _ feel like throwing up all the time. But he sucks it up, because he’s Uchiha Sasuke and something like this doesn’t really bother him at all! Not enough to make him turn around with his tail between his legs!

He’s going to explore the city and find the portal the Senju use to get back to their stinky forest. Then he’s going to go home and tell his parents and he’ll be a hero! He’ll be known for something that  _ he _ did, all on his own with no one else’s name hanging over his head.

Sasuke skips along, daydreaming of what kind of reward he might get. Maybe desert for dinner for a whole month. Or even his whole life! Maybe his mom will let him eat whatever he wants entirely — and maybe his dad will let him sit at the big kids table.

A hand grasps the collar of his shirt, picking him straight up off the ground like mother cats do with their young. He stiffens and dangles there.

“What do you think you’re doing?”

The voice is deep and stern, the way his father’s is when Sasuke’s done something wrong. The man it belongs to is tall, with a dour expression on his pale face and narrow eyes that flash crimson. For a moment, Sasuke thinks it’s another Uchiha, but then he sees the shock of white hair and smells the odd combination of wolf and wood.

Sasuke struggles, kicking his legs. “Let me down!”

The man does not let him down. “Your tail is out, brat.”

Sasuke gasps, smacking his hands against his bum. His tail is, in fact, waving around. Pouting, he wills it to shift back. He’d been doing so well, too. Honestly. He struggles again, and the man only shakes him slightly.

“Hey!”

A grunt. “What are you doing out here all alone?”

Sasuke squints up at the white-haired man suspiciously. “None of your business, old man!”

“Old—” A sigh this time. “Don’t you know it’s dangerous for kids your age to wander around alone? This is a city, not a small town and certainly not your Compound. More than just Supernatural species are dangerous. Humans can be worse.”

Sasuke eyes the pedestrians walking around, the people with shopping bags or cups of bitter smelling coffee. They don’t look dangerous. “They don’t have anything special about them. I’m not scared, anyway!”

The man lets out another sigh and starts walking.

“Hey, hey! Where are you taking me! Who even are you!?” 

“I’m taking you to the Werewolf portal. They’ll get you back to the  _ cats.” _ He replies gruffly. “And I’m Tobirama.”

“I thought I smelled wolf.” Sasuke mutters. He hangs limply like a scolded kitten, giving up on struggling. The man is too big and the cold, detached disapproval reminds him too much of his father to really go against Tobirama’s stalwart wishes. 

He wonders about the scent of earth. But no, it couldn’t be. The Senju and Uchiha hate each other. A Senju, even one that was half werewolf, would never help him. Or maybe Tobirama was actually taking Sasuke somewhere to kill him! Assuming he was half Senju at all...

“Are you gonna kill me?”

“What? No. You’re a child.”

Sasuke glances up at Tobirama, his round cheeks puffed as he tries to look threatening. “Would you kill me if I wasn’t?”

Red eyes peer down at him, considering. It makes the back of Sasuke’s neck go cold. “No,” Tobirama finally says. “Not without reason.”

Sasuke nods, satisfied in the way children who still think themselves immortal are. “My parents are gonna be so mad at me.”

“Good.”

“You’re kind of a jerk.”

**Author's Note:**

> Follow / Support me on [Tumblr!](https://spideyfoof.tumblr.com/)


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